BBC Plans Nearly 1,200 Hours Of Coverage From 2014 Sochi Winter Games

January 13, 2014

The BBC "is lining up nearly 1,200 hours of live and catch-up video action from the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi in February, with its most comprehensive digital coverage of the four-yearly event yet, encompassing TV, HD streams, computer, tablet and mobile," according to Hatty Collier of the London GUARDIAN. From the Opening Ceremony on Feb. 7, "the BBC staff of 95 in the Russian city on the Black Sea coast will deliver 200 hours of network TV coverage." The BBC "is planning a further 660 hours of live action and 330 hours of replays and catch-up via various digital services." These will include "two red button video streams via traditional TV sets and six HD video streams available to viewers on PC, tablet, mobile and Internet connected TVs." BBC2, BBC Radio 5 Live and the corporation's website "will also have extensive Sochi Winter Games coverage." Online coverage "will be focused on a fully responsive Winter Olympics live page on the BBC Sport website, which combines live video streams, Radio 5 Live coverage, stats and digital journalism in one place for the first time and optimises content, including video based on the size and type of the device -- PC, tablet or mobile -- used to view it" (BBC, 1/9).